Screen Log 19: Superbad; The History Boys; Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again; Pose Season 1

"Pose."

When that "Post a poster of your favorite movie without explaining" game went around on Twitter, I put SUPERBAD in with some hesitation. Maybe I was wondering if it's just a case of not remembering clearly, the way we tend to filter the less fun parts out of memories, so that what we end up recalling isn't exactly the entire thing, but just a glamorized part of it. I saw "Superbad" again, and nope, definitely a fun movie from start to finish. It's just unabashed bastusan from start to end, with no pretenses whatsoever, and it pulls off its comedy big time. 

It's a different case with my rewatch of THE HISTORY BOYS (which I don't think any company will be staging in Manila any time soon, too damn culturally specific as the play's topic and milieu is). So many layers and nuances I missed out on the previous times I saw this. That "Hodge the Drummer" scene between Samuel Barnett and Richard Griffiths, for instance, is just poignant, just plain effective use of dialogue and understatement and metaphor. Or that whole "History is women following men with buckets" speech by Frances de la Tour, which I never really fully grasped until now, how it sort of encapsulates the whole movie, especially with regards to her character. This is definitely one of the successful stage-to-screen adaptations of our time, one that grows richer with every viewing.

I didn't think the first "Mamma Mia" movie was bad, but then I was still in high school when it was shown in our cinemas, and the first few minutes I was confused, if I remember correctly, as to where exactly the "real" world stopped and the "singing" world began, or if there even was such a boundary. The new movie, MAMMA MIA! HERE WE GO AGAIN, was just the perfect antidote to the recent turn of events in our country. I saw it the other day, after the shit president's state of the nation address and the announcement that the plundering thief of an ex-president is the new speaker of Congress. "Mamma Mia 2" is a load of unbridled joy, its prequel-sequel magic delivered seamlessly, the transitions never jarring, the fun always infectious. It knows it's a silly movie and doesn't pretend to be something more serious. Everyone is terrific--Lily James is my discovery--but the glorified cameos of Cher and Meryl Streep are the best parts, quite appropriately saved for last. If I may be allowed an act of heresy, maybe the movie ought to travel back in time and give some tips on pulling off this prequel-sequel mumbo-jumbo to "The Godfather 2," which never really clicked with me on a more visceral, emotional level.

Just finished Season 1 of POSE, the new Ryan Murphy TV series about the 1980s LGBTQ ballroom scene in New York. Billy Porter and Indya Moore can start campaigning for their Emmys now, and if they don't get nominated next year, I am sure some heads will have to roll. Evan Peters, too, I think, if only for his episode 3 performance. Moore is the best part of the show. Episode after episode, she just oozes raw emotion and commands every scene she's in, not by eating scenery or anything loud, no, but by quietly luring the viewer into her world, perhaps into her soul, even. There's just something so natural, so earthy, so heartbreaking with the way she delivers her lines. The show as a whole can't veer away from its "Glee"-like moments and turn of events, but I'm willing to forgive the show for those moments if it means watching Elektra (most improved actress by the finale!) say "I think we've had enough of feelings" again. And of course her epic read of House Ferocity. Next season, please.